exploring characteristics of the gifted
The latest issue of the Mensa Research Journal explores high intelligence—giftedness—in the workplace. The authors found that gifted adults are “sometimes not able to function adequately at work,” which seems ironic: the most intelligent among us may function less ably than the rest of us at work, in school, or in other settings.1
Gifted people share certain characteristics that can make adapting difficult when adapting means thinking, acting, or feeling within normal limits. Several articles mentioned that people with very high IQs are often misdiagnosed as having ADHD or autism.
characteristics of high iq people
- Speed of thinking. Gifted individuals think more quickly than others. They make many mental switches, associate rapidly, and give the impression that they jump from one subject to the next.
- High sensitivity. People with high intelligence are also more sensitive in various areas such as psychomotor, sensorial, intellectual, imaginative, and emotional. They are sometimes confused with people who have ADHD.
- Introversion. The inner world of the gifted is highly developed. They are quickly and easily hurt, so may tend to keep others at a distance. Some avoid parties and other social gatherings because the topics of conversation bore them or because they have been rejected for being different in the past. People with high IQs also have trouble finding others like them, which can lead to even more isolation.
- Emotional development. Many gifted individuals feel emotions strongly, but because their thinking ability is dominant and provides safety, their emotional development may lag behind. They may have trouble linking feelings and reason. This may be reinforced when the child’s giftedness is not recognized from an early age, and when it is mistaken for autism or other developmental problems.
- Creativity. Gifted individuals can identify patterns quickly and thus predict trends. They may draw conclusions intuitively or make what appear to be quick or premature judgments. Their creativity is often frustrated by the regular education system or the typical workplace.
- Independence. Gifted people make judgments and form opinions autonomously. They are non-conformist and therefore display “inappropriate behavior” in the classroom or work place. They often have an aversion to non-democratic authority.
- Perfectionism. Perfectionism is often accompanied by having too high expectations of others, but also with shame, guilt feelings, and feelings of inferiority through not being able to meet their own high expectations.
- Learning style. Many gifted people have exploratory learning styles. They look for what isn’t there, and are often bored by rote learning methods. As a result, they may never develop learning strategies.
- Fear of failure and under-performing. If their intelligence is not stimulated, children often develop bad working habits. They sometimes think that they are stupid, become afraid of failure, and start under-performing. Their motivation to learn decreases.
a wide range of interests
Gifted individuals often exhibit a wide range of interests and talents. Once they have mastered a particular activity or hobby, they may lose interest and move on to explore something new.
They also tend to perceive multiple layers of meaning in situations and relationships—nuances that others might overlook. This heightened sensitivity can be emotionally taxing, even isolating, as the gifted person is aware of complexities that go unrecognized by those around them. Without support, this deep perceptiveness may lead to anxiety or even verge on neurosis. It’s crucial to help gifted individuals understand that their way of experiencing the world is different, but valid.
For example, a 10-year-old who can read, think, and comprehend at a high school level may still be emotionally and socially typical for their age. Such a mismatch can create real difficulties in a fifth-grade classroom. These challenges should be acknowledged and addressed, rather than ignored or left for the child to navigate alone.
strategies for the gifted
The authors write that gifted people use various strategies to cope with their oddness. They may choose to be inconspicuous, keeping a low profile and restricting personal development because they’re not aware of their high intelligence, or don’t care to do the work that will lead to being accepted or better adjusted. In fact, if the highly intelligent child or person cannot see the value of being well adjusted, they may forgo getting along altogether.
Children who grew up knowing they were highly intelligent and accepted it are more likely to have developed the social skills to get along with others. Many who adapt do so because they’re able to learn or work in an environment full of gifted others. Still others move on from acceptance to being primarily social, functioning well in multi-disciplinary jobs where high intelligence and good social skills are needed–many more highly intelligent people work in the humanities, for example.
Some with high IQ develop confrontational styles in the classroom or workplace. While this may satisfy their rational minds, it results in social and even workplace isolation. Being taught the advantages of getting along with professors and supervisors may need to be made explicit.
professions
Another article in the journal surveyed groups of gifted and non-gifted adults to research what sorts of professions the gifted tend to choose. I was surprised to learn that nearly 46 percent of gifted people surveyed worked in the humanities, while only 18 percent of those with average intelligence did; and that only 22 percent of the gifted worked in STEM professions, whereas 26 percent of those with average intelligence did. Similar proportions of the gifted and non-gifted worked in the natural sciences.
Most surprising was that only 11 percent of gifted people chose economic or legal professions, while almost 27 percent of the non-gifted went into economics or law.
Finally, no gifted people in the study group chose artistic professions, whereas 4.4 percent of the non-gifted did. I found this particularly interesting, since in our local Mensa group there are several artists, although not one of them chose art as a primary career. All of them had one or two careers before retiring, and only turned to art after they had retired comfortably. This goes along with what other researchers have found—that people who are intelligent and will act on their intelligence also tend to be practical. They will choose predictable safety over behaviors with questionable outcomes.
notes
- Nauta, Arnolda & Corten, F. (2002). Gifted adults in work. TBV. 10. 332-335. ↩︎
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